Growth, not gold, the goal for Gilas Pilipinas in Jones Cup

After a two-year absence in the William Jones Cup, the Philippines is back in action for the annual international tournament held in Taiwan.

 

The last time the country competed in 2012, Most Valuable Player LA Tenorio led Gilas Pilipinas to a championship with a stunning upset of 15-time gold medalist United States.

 

This year, however, Gilas coach Tab Baldwin is not concerned about duplicating the feat achieved by the squad formed by his predecessor Chot Reyes.

 

"The real thing I'm concerned about is winning the gold medal in FIBA Asia," said the coach. "Everything that leads up to that is about getting better, not about trying to win a game or get a result or win a medal or anything else like that."

 

The Jones Cup stint is part of their buildup for the FIBA Asia campaign in Changsha, China.

 

With the national team gunning for a ticket to the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil next year, Baldwin does not want to worry about actively competing for the gold in Taipei.

 

"If it happens - obviously we try to win every game that we play - it's a bonus for me. What we gotta do is become a team that can win FIBA Asia," he said.

 

Gilas is coming off a 0-3 record in their first pocket tournament in Estonia last week, but the American-Kiwi coach refused to set expectations for his wards other than growing as a team.

 

The Philippines will open their Jones Cup campaign against one of the two Chinese Taipei teams on Sunday at 7 p.m. —JST, GMA News